Chapter Fifteen
Kathy felt good about where her life was. Better than she’d felt in a long time. Kevin had been true to his word. He called when he said he would, and if she said she didn’t have time to talk or couldn’t meet him, he left her alone. Mostly. He whined a little. Maybe tried to get her to change her mind, but no real pressure.
They’d gone to some big society function two nights ago, and as much as she’d wanted to go home with him, she’d been exhausted and needed to leave early to get some rest. Now she was getting ready for a charity benefit on the beach. She could think of worse ways to spend an evening.
And Anna was opening the shop in the morning, so she could spend the night at Kevin’s apartment without having to rush out or crash early. She smoothed a hand over the sundress she wore and debated whether to put her hair up.
Kevin loved her hair down, but the late August heat made her curls go wild. She decided on a compromise and gathered the sides and clipped them at the top of her head. She just finished swiping on mascara when her bell rang.
When she opened the door, Kevin was pacing in the hall, talking on his phone. She had no idea what he was talking about or to whom, but he was irritated. It showed in every line of his body, but his voice remained calm and deceptively seductive. The man was like a chameleon.
As he turned and saw her, she saw another shade to him. His body still carried the stress, his voice the calm, but now his eyes reflected desire. She briefly wondered what a stranger would see looking at him. He blinked and shook his head, returning his focus to the phone.
“No. That’s not acceptable. I don’t care that you can’t make it. Someone from your company should be there, especially to deal with the issues that arise. That’s part of your job.” He ran a hand through his hair, making a mess of what had been neatly combed.
Kathy locked up and nodded toward the door to let him know they could leave. He continued to firmly let the person on the other end of the line know how displeased he was. It was weird listening to him talk like that.
Outside, she glanced up and down the block for his SUV, but it was nowhere in sight. He tugged her elbow and led her to a car, where a driver got out and opened the door for them. She turned and glanced at Kevin with a raised eyebrow before sliding in. He simply smiled in return.
He disconnected his call, took a seat beside her, and closed the door. Before she had a chance to ask about the call, he gripped his phone tightly in his fist as if he planned to throw it, and he let out a guttural yell. Then he hit the side of his fist against the door.
Kathy’s heart skipped. She sat silently and waited.
Kevin closed his eyes and laid his head on the back of the seat. After a few deep breaths, he opened one eye and said, “Sorry about that. I had to let the frustration out somehow.”
She still sat staring at him, her hands clasped in her lap.
Kevin jolted forward and leaned toward her. She jumped back. He grabbed her hand. “Did I scare you? I didn’t mean to. That . . . That had nothing to do with you.”
“I know.”
She felt ridiculous for being startled.
“I would never, ever, hurt you.”
“I know that too.” She might not be able to control that visceral reaction to any kind of conflict around her, but she believed him.
His hand gently caressed hers. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She forced a smile. “What happened?” She pointed at his phone that was currently lying on the seat between them.
“I’ll get to that. What’s wrong?” he asked again.
“It’s nothing.” She tried to wave it off, but he wouldn’t have it. She took a deep breath. “It’s not a big deal. I told you I don’t deal well with conflict. I’m not afraid of you. I know you were upset about something else. I can’t control that immediate reaction though. I’m okay.” This time the smile she gave him was genuine.
He leaned close and kissed her. His warm lips pressed against hers and when his tongue entered her mouth, it was instant comfort. Judging by the ease in his shoulders, the kiss had the same effect on him. When they separated, she touched his cheek, the stubble growing there rasping her palm.
“I needed that. Should’ve done it back in your apartment.”
“You were a little busy yelling at someone.”
“I didn’t yell.”
She smiled. “You yelled without raising your voice. It was quite effective.”
“He had it coming.”
“Who?”
“Brent. The City Connections guy who is supposed to be working with me. He’s fucking this up. I have no idea how he even got this job, but he has no clue. We’ve been working together. All the time I wanted to spend with you had been spent with him.”
“And?”
“And tonight the asshole isn’t showing up. He’s supposed to be working with businesses to make the city a tourist destination. If events flop, we look bad.”
“But this is an established event. Moira told me all about it. She comes every year.”
“Great. So Mouthy Moira will be there to watch it flop for the first time because Brent doesn’t know how to do his job.”
Kathy reached over and ran a hand down Kevin’s thigh. “You’ll be fine. The event will happen, people will have fun, and no one will remember the little glitches.”
He caught her hand. “Let’s hope they’re just little glitches.” He lifted her hand and kissed the center of her palm. “I’m glad you’re with me.”
“We all need someone to talk us off the ledge now and again.”
“Usually that’s Jimmy, but he wouldn’t get this.” He toyed with her fingers as he spoke. “Who’s your person?”
She didn’t even need to think. “Moira.”
He reached over and brushed her hair off her shoulder, allowing his fingers to linger on her skin where her shoulder met her neck. “I’d like to take on that role.”
“I’m not sure you’re the talking down type.”
“Of course I am.”
“You’re more like the knock down the walls type.”
“For you, I could be both.”
She didn’t believe that for a moment, but she warmed at the idea that he was willing to try to be anything she needed.
The car slowed and the driver looked at them in the rearview mirror. “Would you like me to park, or let you out here?”
“Here is fine,” Kevin answered.
As they stepped from the car, she asked, “You never told me what the deal was with the fancy car and driver. Why didn’t you drive?”
“I don’t get many perks with my new job. This is city business, so the mayor springs for a driver.”
“Check you out. Wait till your brothers hear about this.”
He took her hand and led her to the beachfront building. “They won’t find out anything.”
“Hmm . . . sounds like blackmail information.”
“I’m sure we can work something out to keep this a secret.” He flashed her a smile while opening the door. His dark hair was still mussed from running his fingers through it, giving him a rakish look as he grinned.
Unfortunately, it was the last genuine smile she saw from him all night.